Clare V Dublin All Ireland Minor Hurling Semi Final

Huge game ahead for the minors next Sunday, we really need to win this...Kilkenny looked pretty awesome yesterday with Power, Aylward and Brennan to the fore but they were afforded plenty of time and space by a lacklustre Galway defence...The bookies have made us heavy favourites for the Dublin clash due to the fact that we are Munster champions and Dublin have taken two heavy beatings off Kilkenny and were fairly lucky to get the better of Wexford.....People will say that this Clare team was well beaten below in Dungarvan but I wouldn't read too much into that, only 6 or 7 of the team that played below in Dungarvan remain in the same position with a few personel changes thrown in...Management may well have been reading too much into the form of the Bridge and Eire Og lads after the 21 A final, we are far better balanced and have gotten three decent games under our belts since and most importantly we have finished all three games strongly...


Hopefully we account for the Dubs next sunday and get a good go at the cats, I know they played in a challenge earlier in the year and there was nothing in it....You would have to feel that Croke Park would suit this Clare team as they have a very mobile back line, especially the half backs, while Kelly and Galvan at midfield and the three lads in the half forward line all have serious appetite for work while Keane and O'Halleron in the corners look serious prospects and are well able to win their own ball at this level and will take any goal chances given to them....A lad like Cathal O'Connell(younger brother of Nickey) could well be an excellent impact sub in the space of Croker, he may well be small and slight but he has the quickest hands I have ever seen and super balance, scored an excellent goal against Corofin last week for us in the senior championship...

Team should be along the lines of

Taaffe, Vaughan, Flanagan, Morey, Boyce, Lynch, S O’Halloran, Galvin, Kelly, Malone, Collins, Shanahan, D O’Halloran, Arthur, Keane


Compared to the 15 that started v Waterford in April

R Taaffe; H Vaughan, N Purcell, S Morey; P Flanagan, K Lynch, S O’Halloran; P Collins, T Kelly; D O’Halloran, D Keane, A Cunningham; A Mulready, N Arthur, C Gavin.


Far better balance to the side now that there was in April....Heard Taeffe is struggling with a shoulder injury picked up last week and is a serious doubt

Yep P you have got to be favs here. Watching the Kittens on Sunday conjures up images of 'canon fodder'.... regardless of who wins. A good hard and close game needed by both teams - with the winner then hopefully equipped for 6 Sept!

Jayo Cluxton wrote:Yep P you have got to be favs here. Watching the Kittens on Sunday conjures up images of 'canon fodder'.... regardless of who wins. A good hard and close game needed by both teams - with the winner then hopefully equipped for 6 Sept!

Like I said Kilkenny looked very good but was shocked at how poor galway were on Sunday, their basic skills desserted them on the day and they threw in the towel very easily...four of the goals they conceeded were poor and the keeper's confidence looked at rock bottom for a finish up....Although the kilkenny manager said on Sunday he thought he had 4 or 5 future senior hurlerson his team, high praise indeed....


I hear this is a fairly young Dublin side with a good chunk of them underage again next year, they will have to hurl well as this is a confident Clare team and if they get on top they will do serious damage, they remind me a bit of last years 21's side in terms of the balance of the team and their style of hurling...

Dubs are a young team P - even by minor standards! I thought the Cats were awesome though - the FF was a class act.

I think Clare may have enough ammo for the Dubs but like the senior after match, the winner will just provide the opposition! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Jayo Cluxton wrote:Dubs are a young team P - even by minor standards! I thought the Cats were awesome though - the FF was a class act.

I think Clare may have enough ammo for the Dubs but like the senior after match, the winner will just provide the opposition! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Time will tell but I would be confident of this Clare team putting up a decent performance against the Cats if we manage to get over ye.....

The talent that Kilkenny have coming through is amazing. Only 3 out of the 15 starters from the All Ireland Final last year remain yet here they are again. Its unbelieveable.

Clare have named an unchanged team for Sundays All Ireland Minor
Hurling Semi-Final against Dublin

Ronan Taffee and Cathal Malone have been passed fit to Play ,

The team in full is:

1. Ronan Taffee ( R.O.Tath) Tubber

2. Haulie Vaughan (M.O.Beachain) Inagh Kilnamona

3. Paul Flanagan ( P.O.Flannaghain) Ballyea (Caption)

4. Seadna Morey (S.O.Mora ) Sixmilebridge

5. Enda Boyce ( E.O.Buaigh) Cratloe

6. Kevin Lynch (K.O.Lionsigh) Sixmilebridge

7. Stephan O Halloran (S.O.hAllaurin) Clarecastle

8. Colm Galvin (C.O.Gealbhain) Clonlara

9. Tony Kelly (A.O.Ceallaigh) Ballyea

10. Cathal Malone ( C.O.Maoilean) Ennistymon

11. Paudge Collins (P.O.Coilean) Cratloe)

12. Jamie Shanahan (S.O.Seanchain) Sixmilebridge

13. David O Halloran ( D.O.hAllurain) Eire Og Ennis

14. Niall Arthur (N.Mac Artuir) Inagh Kilnamona

15 Daire Keane ( D.O.Cein) Kilmaley

Surprising for a club as strong at senior as yourselves, ye' have only the 1 starter. Have ye' no under-age structure at all or what's the story??

Boxtyeater wrote:Surprising for a club as strong at senior as yourselves, ye' have only the 1 starter. Have ye' no under-age structure at all or what's the story??

Sure we are only a small village and a small catchment area, up to 5 or 6 years ago we would have been doing to have a lad on the minor panel let alone team every 5 or 6 years...considering we made up one third of last years A/I winning 21's starting team and one third of the clare under 16's starting team we are in rude health

We have another lad on the bench, both are underage again next year and are serious prospects, the lad Galvan at midfield has a serious engine on him, very rounded and rangey kind of a hurler(his auld lad pat would have hurled for Clare in the late 80's) while the lad on the bench is Cathal O'Connell(younger brother of Nickey) and this lad is a star in the making, he is only 5"5, I have played with and against some serious operators but this lad has the quickest hands I have ever seen, expect to see him at some stage....

Enda Boyce ( E.O.Buaigh) Cratloe




A good Na Dúnaibh (tír chonaill) name if I ever heard one

Is he born and bred

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OMAR wrote:Enda Boyce


Is he born and bred

A nephew of this man .....Unlikely...A noble performer just the same and one of my favourites....

OMAR wrote:Enda Boyce ( E.O.Buaigh) Cratloe




A good Na Dúnaibh (tír chonaill) name if I ever heard one

Is he born and bred

AFAIK no, although his stock could be from further a field, a lot of northies moved down towards shannon/cratloe and that general area of south clare after Shannon town was first built....

A nephew of this man .....Unlikely...A noble performer just the same and one of my favourites....[/quote]



Something very "fields of Athenry" ish about that tune

The Puke wrote:[AFAIK no, although his stock could be from further a field, a lot of northies moved down towards shannon/cratloe and that general area of south clare after Shannon town was first built....

Is it a town or an amalgam of business zones and housing? Was it ever granted town status? What amenieties has it that would make it a real town?

Has it the required infrastructure to be regarded as a town or is it just a gaggle of buildings. By all accounts it's not exactly D4 rating.....

Boxtyeater wrote:

The Puke wrote:[AFAIK no, although his stock could be from further a field, a lot of northies moved down towards shannon/cratloe and that general area of south clare after Shannon town was first built....

Is it a town or an amalgam of business zones and housing? Was it ever granted town status? What amenieties has it that would make it a real town?

Has it the required infrastructure to be regarded as a town or is it just a gaggle of buildings. By all accounts it's not exactly D4 rating.....

Tis a kip and an eye sore if you ask me, hasn't been helped by the fact that the dredges of limerick have been moved out there with the regeneration.....nothing but endless roads and glum housing and industrial estates....home of some of the windiest soccer players ever to play in Clare

Up the Banner.

DUBLIN (MHC v Clare)
1 Eamonn Dillon (Naomh Fionnbarra)
2 Conor Murphy (Crumlin)
3 Emmet McKenna (Faughs)
4 Seán McClelland (Lucan Sarsfields)
5 Cillian Moffat (Ballyboden St Enda’s)
6 Danny Sutcliffe (St Jude’s)
7 Ben Quinn (Good Counsel)
8 Darren Kelly (Erin’s Isle)
9 Brian McCarthy (Ballyboden St Enda’s)
10 Glenn Whelan (Balinteer St John’s)
11 Ciarán Kilkenny (Castleknock)
12 Fergal Heavey (Faughs)
13 Cormac Costello (Whitehall Colmcille)
14 Emmet Ó Conghaile (Lucan Sarsfields)
15 Dean Flood (Naomh Barróg)

Subs
16 Carl O’Mahony (Faughs)
17 Eoin Small (Ballyboden St Enda’s)
18 Chris Crummey (Lucan Sarsfields)
19 Matthew McCaffrey (Lucan Sarsfields)
20 Naoise Maguire (Ballyboden St Enda’s)
21 Robert Hardy (St Jude’s, capt)
22 Niall Ryan (Ballyboden St Enda’s)
23 Denis Forde (Na Fianna)
24 John Hetherton (St Vincent’s)
25 Aodhán Clabby (Ballinteer St John’s)
26 Aidan Kehoe (Na Fianna)
27 Gareth Cronin (Erin’s Isle)
28 Seán Barron (Cuala)
29 Jack Whelan (Round Tower’s, Clondalkin)
30 Seán Burke (Na Fianna)
31 Cormac Ryan (Whitehall Colmcille)
32 Dylan Mulligan (Kilmacud Crokes)

Best of luck to the young Dubs tomorrow..I know this is a good Clare team, but you never know at this level..The game is there to be won....If costello, Flood and Kilkenny have a good day we will be close going into the last 10..

Cormac C is a great young lad. Best of luck to him and the lads!

Jayo Cluxton wrote:Cormac C is a great young lad. Best of luck to him and the lads!

I'd be fearful for him. That young Morey lad from the Bridge will batter him......

Jayo Cluxton wrote:Cormac C is a great young lad. Best of luck to him and the lads!

Played well indeed Jayo as oddly did his opposite number. Dublin were unlucky with a couple of costly wides particularly from Kilkenny at 11.
The experience will stand to them and I'd wonder are many of them minor again next year. Nice to see Dublin give a good account of themselves at this level, they hurled well enough and never let the heads drop which is a big plus.
Puke, I hope you haven't re-financed the bicycle to wade into Clare for I fear for them the next day. That said, excellent performances from Lynch at 6, Kelly at m/f and Arthur at f/f....I'm aware from previous posts that Taffee in goal was carrying a knock so I'll give him the benefit for the 2nd goal but the 1st was a bit of a howler in all fairness.

Backs to face a maelstrom the next day.... [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]